Suspenders



W. J. ELLIS Dec. 29, 1931.

SUSPENDERS Filed NOV. 5, 1930 Patented Dec. 29, 1931 WALTER J. ELLIS, OF ANDERSON, INDIANA susrnnnnns Application filed November 5,1930, Serial No. 493,634.

This invention relates to apparel and more particularly to suspenders known as invisible suspenders and intended to be worn beneath a shirt with eyes at the lower ends of the button-engaging tabs projecting outwardly through the shirt for engagement with suspender buttons. One object of the invention is to provide a pair of suspenders which, when applied to a shirt with the lower ends of the buttonenga 'ing tabs projecting outwardly through slits Iorined in the shirt, may be retained in proper engagement with the shirt and the shirt prevented from sliding upwardly out of a comfortable position and causing the button-engaging tabs of the suspenders to be exposed to view. I

Another object of the invention is to provide improved anchoring clipswhich may 29 applied to button-engaging tabs of suspenders of a conventional construction and after the tabs have been passed outwardly through slits in a shirt for such engagementwith suspender buttons, the clips have such engage- 2 ment with the shirt that the shirt will be ver Y eii'ectivelv arevented from workin u wardiy out of place.

Another object of the invention is to so form the clips that, while the button-engaging tabs may extend downwardly in diverging relation to eaclrother, their lower ends will be disposed in vertical parallel relation to each other. 7

Another obiect of the invention is to provide an anchoring'clip for suspcnder tabs which is very simple in construction and may be very easily applied and when applied will be held firmly in its proper position upon a tab. I The invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, wherein Figure 1 is a perspective view showing the manner in which the invisible suspenders are applied to a shirt with the lower ends of the button-engaging tabs projecting outwardly through slits in the shirt,

Fig. 2 is an enlarged view showing the manner in which the lower end portion of a suspended, tab is held in engagement with a portion of a shirt through which it projects,

I Fig. 3 is a view'siinilar to Fig. 2 looking from the inside insteadof the outside,

Fig. 4 is a sectional view taken on the line ll of Fig. 8, and p Fig. 5 is a perspective view of one of the anchoring clips. The suspenders constituting the subjectinatter. of this invention are known as in-' visible suspenders and are worn beneath a shirt, indicated in general 'bythe numeral 1, with their shoulder straps 2 engaged through loops 3 sewed to the. shoulder portions of the shirt. Thestraps Q eXtenddownwardly at the front and-baclr, as indicated by dotted lines in Figure 1, .and at their lower ends car- 6 ry tabs); which divergedownwardlyand at their lower ends are formed with eyes through which suspender' buttons arejto be engaged. Slits Gare formed in the front and rear portionsof the shirt through which the lower ends ofthe button-engaging tabs'are passed outwardly, and-in order toreinforce the portions of the shirt in which the slits are formed, there have been provided facing strips 7 which are sewed against the inner face of the shirt. Slits are formed in the re inforcing strips to register with the openings (3 and the margins of theopenings are worked buttonhole stitches in order to prevent the shirt from being torn or the openings gradually enlarged by fraying. The slits extend transversely of the shirt and only the lower ends of the button-engaging tabs are'to project outwardly through the slots. Therefore, the entire suspenders will be concealed by the shirt with'the exception'of the buttolrengaging loops or eyes 5 and since the lower ends of the tabs are engaged through the openings and the shoulder straps are passed through the supporting strips 8 the suspenders will be held in proper position and prevented from slipping out ofplaoe.

In order to retain the button-engaging tabs in their proper positions with their lower ends projecting outwardly through the slits in the shirt and also prevent the shirt from working upwardly outof its proper position, there have been provided anchoring clips which are applied" to the button-engaging tabs close to but slightly above the buttonengaging loops or eyes. Each of these clips is constructed as shown in Figure 5, and the clips are applied to the tabs, as shown in Figures 2, 3 and 4. These clips are indicated in general by the numeral 8 and each consists of a strip of sheet metal or other suitable material cut to form a strip or body portion 9. Anchoring arms 10 project from opposite sides of the body in spaced relation to its lower edge and shorter arms 11 project from opposite sides of the strip or body at its lower end in spaced relation to the arms 10. Clamping arms 12 project from the body between the arms 10 and 11 and similar clamping arms 13 project from opposite sides: of the body at its upper end. Therefore, when. a clip is applied against a button-engaging tab, the clamping arms 12 and 13 may be bent into tight gripping engagement with the tab from opposite side edges thereof and the clip will be firmly held in flat contacting engagement with the tab. It should be noted that the portion of the strip or body 9 above the side arms 10 extends diagonally with respect to the lower portion of the clip. Therefore, when the clips are applied to the button-engaging tabs, the tabs may extend downwardly in diverging relation to each other but their lower ends will be heldiin vertical positions. Therefore, the button-engaging loops will be disposed vertically, as shown in Figures 2 and'3, and may be very easily engaged with suspender but tons. After the clips have been applied to the button-engaging tabs, the loops or buttonengaging eyes at their lower ends are passed outwardly through the slitsin the shirt and each tab is then moved transversely a sufiicient distance to engage one of the side arms 11 through the slit through which the tab passes and the tab is then moved transversely in an opposite direction until the second side arm 11 may be passed through the slit. The arms 11 will then both be dis posed externally of the shirt while the arms 10 will be disposed inwardly of the shirt and portions of the shirt about the slits will be confined between the arms 10 and 11. Since the arms 10 are of greater length than the arms 11, these arms cannot pass through the slits which are only long enough to permit the arms 11 to be passed through them one at a time, as previously set forth. Therefore, a shirt cannot work upwardly along the sus pender-engaging tabs out of a comfortable position and also this prevents the shirt from working upwardly and causing large por tions of the suspender-engaging tabs to be exposed. It will thus be seen that the clips serve to firmly hold the suspender-engaging tabs in proper engagement through the slits in the shirt and prevent the shirt from sliding upwardly along the tabswhen the eyes of the tabs are engaged with suspender buttons. The clips may be very easily detached from a 'the shirt a-ndtabs in determined relation to each other, eachclip having its upper portion extending diagonally of its lower 301- tion whereby downwardly diverging tabs may have their lower ends held in vertical parallel relation to each other. I

' Suspenders comprising shoulder straps having tabs extending from their ends and terminating in button-engaging eyes, the tabs being adapted to be passed outwardly through openings in a shirt worn over the suspenders, and clips carried by said tabs and having upper and lower arms projecting from opposite sides of the respective tabs to which the clips are applied whereby portions of a shirt may be engaged between the upper and lower arms and retain the shirt and tabs in determined relation to each other, each clip having its upper portion above the upper arm extending diagonally of its lower portionwhereby downwardly diverging tabs may have their lower ends held in vertical parallel relation to each other.

3. Suspenders comprising shoulder straps having tabs extending from their ends and terminating in button-engaging eyes, the tabs being adapted to be passed outwardly through openings in a shirt worn over the suspenders, and clips carried by said tabs and each consisting of a plate having means for securing it against a tab longitudinally thereof and having upper and lower arms carried by the plate and extending from its side edges to project from opposite sides of the tab to which the clip is applied whereby portions of a shirt may be engaged between the upper and lower arms and retain the shirt and tabs in determined relation to each other, the upper arms being of greater length than the lower arms and projecting beyond the free ends thereof whereby the upper arms wil be prevented from passing through an opening through which the lower arms may be passed and a shirt prevented from slipping upwardly along the tabs.

In testimony whereof I aflix my signature. 

